


Flames of Change

by DZCollabs



Category: Furry (Fandom), Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe, CAUSE IT AIN'T, Fluff and Angst, Furry, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Neutral Route, POV Third Person, Pacifist Route, Undertale Spoilers, Worldbuilding, and if you make it through this long story you get "a version" of a happy ending, and lots of it we promise, but don't judge, but its been 5 years so we good fam, but that goes without saying i suppose, gets pretty dark, just cause we're furries doesn't mean this is sexual, plenty of curse words though
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-02
Updated: 2020-11-01
Packaged: 2021-03-09 02:40:54
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,608
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27343702
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DZCollabs/pseuds/DZCollabs
Summary: "Was it stupidity, or was it fate?"A young wolf pup runs away and falls -- literally -- into a new world.(What to expect: expanded character development and world building, multiple POVs (all third person, though mostly protagonist POV for a majority of the story), adventure, drama and tension, some slice of life, and a precise pinch of canon divergence when necessary. This story will be long and will have "a version" of a happy ending, so to speak.)[Comment moderation on -- kindly refrain from posting comments that simply flame us for being furries.]
Comments: 2
Kudos: 10





	Flames of Change

**Author's Note:**

> [Some notes from the authors.]
> 
> Hi everyone! Thanks for taking the time to check out this little story my bro and I have put together. We may be five years too late to jump on the Undertale bandwagon but we don't care, haha.
> 
> This is a bit based on a story I tried to write years ago but could just never finish... or realize the way I wanted to. But now, years later, and my bro and I are working together to properly bring it to life. To tell you more in depth what this story is... it's a canon-divergent retelling of the Neutral/Pacifist route of Undertale, with the intent of using the differing story to expand on the worldbuilding and character development to the best of our abilities.
> 
> This story won't be perfect and hell, us being furries may push you away. But this story is still something we're very passionate about. We have a narrative to tell and we're excited to see who will stick around and join us on this crazy journey!  
> \-- Jake
> 
> Hey, all! Max here. Just wanted to take the time to talk about this story a little bit and the process of working on this.
> 
> Only one chapter's out as of making this note so far, and it's already been quite a blast. Heh. My bro, Jake, has come up with quite the amazing, brilliant narrative, and I consider it quite an honor to get to work with him on this. So, I hope you enjoy! We have quite the adventure ahead and, as this chapter indicates, it's going to get pretty dark and messed up from time to time. But I feel that that's only going to make it more investing to watch.
> 
> Stay tuned, everyone! There's a lot more to come! And I hope you have a blast!  
> \-- Max
> 
> [ Welcome to the world of "Flames of Change" everyone. We really hope you enjoy. ]

_It began long ago but I’m quite certain you know the story by now, right? The world was once run by three known races._

_HUMANS; the primary population of the planet, hairless anthropomorphic creatures responsible for the industrialization of society._

_MONSTERS; the magic wielders and the peacekeepers. Those with stark power and the patience to withhold it. Abilities far beyond average man’s understanding._

_FURS; the oddball species. Hybrid between human and animal, somewhere in between all evolutionary chains._

_It would be a tad pointless to say they lived in harmony -- it didn’t last, if it existed at all. There was a time of conflict, years ago… decades… centuries…_

_…_

_Come to think about it, so many eras have gone bye since then…_

_…_

_… the lives of HUMANS, MONSTERS, and FURS changed forever when the war broke out between HUMANS and MONSTERS. The cause is unknown, but such is the way of all things lost to time._

_What is known is that the HUMANS were victorious, and with the last of their own strength, they sealed the MONSTERS underground for the rest of time._

_A selfish misuse of MONSTER magic was taught to the HUMANS in small doses to help provide understanding and all that came of it was a broken end to a war._

_As for FURS…_

_They had no part in the war but they suffered anyway._

_We suffered anyway._

**_And now so much time has passed…_ **

_…_

_…_

_…_

  
  
  
  
  


He stood at the edge of the village, his back to the darkened homes lit only by lamplight emitting from the covered windows. The moon in the night sky hung low and cast bright over the small town, leaving the boy to stare down at the shadow seeping across the ground before him, formed from his small, frail body. Though, it wouldn’t be too long before dark clouds would overtake it. Rain was coming.

A young wolf pup, he was, no older than ten and with somewhat shaggy, yet short black fur. His white tee shirt was slightly stained, smeared with dirt and other residue and shoulders pricked with chips of oak from gathering firewood earlier. Blue, slightly baggy cargo shorts draped down over his kneecaps, which descended to bare legs and broad bare feet, planted firmly on the dirt path.

He took a breath.

His vision was slightly blurred, and his hearing was obstructed by some kind of numbness in his mind. It was as if he was blatantly refusing to hear the world around him. He reminded himself where he was -- making himself conscious of the muffled sounds of humans talking and laughing and living life in their homes.

_It’s late and you were supposed to get groceries._

It was true. The pup gently pulled out a single, folded up dollar bill from his pocket. It was old, and crinkled, and felt like it had been sitting underneath a chair for the past month. The boy read it over several times.

One dollar.

_“Get what’s on the list.”_

There was no list.

_“Get home before dark.”_

It was already nighttime.

_“Don’t go anywhere else.”_

Not like he had anywhere else to go.

One singular dollar.

His hold on the piece of currency grew tight as he sucked in a breath and bit his lip. It was well past close and yet they still sent him out with a single, measly dollar bill to buy groceries.

_You’re well aware it’s an excuse for them._

The wind blows past him and almost takes the dollar bill from his hands -- yet he nearly lets it. No point in holding on to it. No point in trying to do right. There never was any chance from the start.

_So why are you here? Why are you here at the edge of town? What do you plan on doing?_

_Where do you plan on going?_

“Zerrith?”

The boy flinched, crumpling up the bill in his hands and taking a moment to look over his shoulder.

The tall silhouette of a human male loomed behind him, though he couldn’t make out his face against the dark, the light of the moon failing to fall over him from where he stood. But the pup was out in the open. Exposed.

Exposed and in a place he shouldn’t be.

Everyone knew the boy. Any townsfolk could identify him. He was the only fur kept there. He was everyone’s errand boy. Everyone’s scapegoat. Everyone’s excuse. Everyone’s reasoning.

“You best be gettin’ home now.” The man had a bit of a hiss in his deep, gravelly voice -- it was enough to make Zerrith wince at the sound of it. “What’re you even _doing_ out here?”

The wolf pup didn’t reply.

_Only speak when given permission._

**_When was the last time you got permission?_ **

The thought of speaking alone was enough to make his throat feel rough and sore. He didn’t move, however. His joints were locked. He couldn’t even shiver. There was no point.

The right arm of the man was arching towards his waist, the boy could tell by the movement of his shrouded shape. Likely going for some kind of weapon -- a knife or a gun. Every human carried them.

He was always under the threat of them. It was no surprise.

_Let’s recap._

_Tonight you’ve been given an impossible task to get groceries. Groceries to be paid for at a closed store, with so little money you’d be lucky to afford a bottle of water._

_And now it’s far too late to get home and now the townsfolk know you’re out here, where you shouldn’t be._

Zerrith had already come to the conclusion that everything had already become pointless. The pain was inevitable. Staying here would bring more of it. He had nowhere to go, and nobody to turn to. He had no other options. He had nothing waiting for him.

He had nothing to lose.

It was at that moment that he learned something.

He learned he was able to run.

And he realized it a few seconds after making a break for it, booking it out of the town, and ignoring the screams of the man behind--

**_BANG!_ **

A sudden gasp for air. The boy’s eyes widened and he picked up the pace, still not far from the town. A single gunshot. The town was completely alerted now. It would only be a matter of time before they were out of their homes.

He looked over his shoulder, vision blurring. He almost tripped.

His stomach growled. The wolf was far too weak to run far.

Yet what was it that kept him going? The will to live? What kind of determination was this?

His big ears twitched. He could make out the voice of the townsfolk behind him.

_“He’s actually making a run for it?”_

_“Little fuckin’ idiot.”_

_“He won’t get far. Doesn’t even know where he’s going.”_

_“Get his owners. Tell them it’s their dream come true.”_

_“Hunting season?”_

_“Hunting season!”_

There was a cheer and the little fur pup managed to jump forward, gaining more momentum to run deeper into the woods.

But he still didn’t get far. He could hear more screams.

How fast was he running?

How SLOW was he running?

_How far can you carry yourself on such weak, brittle legs?_

  
  
  
  
  


Zerrith pushed himself further and further as the trees flew past him. He continued to run, even as every intake of breath started to sting -- like something sharp was caught in his throat and chest. Yet the screams of the pursuing townsfolk did not die down. If anything, they grew louder -- closer. The only time he couldn’t hear them was when they were masked by a clap of thunder, but he really hoped the heavy rainfall would be enough to hide him.

And yet they kept getting closer.

He ducked behind a tree, partly to avoid their sight, partly because he was far too exhausted to run anymore. His heavy, wheezy panting being drowned out by the flurry of shouts and crushing leaves and breaking twigs as the humans barrelled through where he just was only moments ago -- the light from their flashlights and lanterns bouncing off around the edge of the tree he was hiding behind, yet never touching him directly.

His heart froze at this, knowing how close they were -- how weak and fragile he was that he couldn’t outrun them. Then again, he was only ten. How many ten-year-olds could outrun several armed adults?

Zerrith put off this question for the moment, however, as the moments passed and the sounds of the townsfolk tromping through the woods began to die down, yet he could see their flashlights in the distance -- and, this time, they were more spread out. They were searching more methodically now.

_Move, you idiot! They’re coming!_

Zerrith tried to force himself up, but it took every ounce of his feeble strength to do so and, when he finally did, his legs were shaking like a newborn deer. Clutching his chest and trying to support himself on the nearby trees, he attempted to cautiously make his way around the search party. This was a feat much easier said than done, however -- not only because every step he took shifted some noisy leaves or broke a few twigs -- but also because, as he looked back to where he came from, it became quickly apparent that some had lagged behind to cover ground.

He was alone, tired, and surrounded.

A yip of surprise was covered by the thunder, rain beating down hard against him, as he threw himself into the mud underneath an oddly overgrown shrub. The wet terrain sloshed against him and he groaned softly, trying to curl his small body up to stay hidden, and warm.

And a horrifying thought overtook him.

_You moron you left_ **_footprints_ ** _._

The realization alone was enough to push the sensitive pup to the brink of tears as he clawed at his temple, mentally shaming himself for thinking an endeavor like this was even worthwhile.

“ _Footprints go this way!_ ”

“ _That little bastard couldn’t have gotten far!_ ”

“ _How the hell did he get this deep to begin with?!_ ”

Zerrith closed his eyes, sucking in a breath and biting his lip as he did so. He trembled where he lay, rain trickling through the foliage covering him and seeping into his muddy clothes and stained fur. The rain did a wonderful job at masking the tears running down his face as well.

_You’re crying cause you’re weak. You’re an idiot. Why did you do this? You deserve it if they find you._

The boy sniffled hard and winced -- wondering if that would be enough for them to hear him.

…

…

…

Nothing. Continued rainfall. Continued thunder in the distance. Continued shouts near and far but nothing different.

Until a light flashed in his face and he had to cover his eyes with a yelp.

“ _HEY!_ **_I FOUND HIM!!_ **”

Eyes wide, his survival instincts kicked in.

The wolf jumped up and grappled onto the nearest… anything. His hands found a stick. A small, jagged stick that would do no harm to anything, except maybe his frail, frail self.

**_BANG!_ **   
  


The boy’s ears were ringing as he fell forward, the sound of a gunshot so close to him making him trip and land face first in the mud. Thunder came, and lightning illuminated the woods for a brief moment, but Zerrith didn’t care. He was already found. No point in hiding.

Yet he continued to run, the moment he picked himself up off the ground.

He had no idea where this determination was coming from and he wasn’t sure how to feel about it. All he knew was he had to keep going. Passing trees, he ended up back on the main path, which arched up over a small hill as it went forward. Stumbling, he found it hard to keep straight. He was dizzy. Shouts behind him were getting more and more frequent. Louder. Closer.

The pup bypassed a sign, going over the small hilly road and opening his mouth to scream -- but nothing came out. His throat stung. The cold rain entered his mouth. He swallowed it. Coughed. Sputtered. He didn’t care. It was nice.

He opened his eyes after a moment to make sure he was still following the path. He was. It dipped down before going forward and straight up. The boy looked up and into the stormy distance. Well, not much of a distance -- the path led to a large, pointed, foreboding mass of land. Another crackle of thunder, with a blade of lightning cutting through the sky and lighting up the only stop on his painful, dangerous journey.

He kept running.

The townsfolk briefly stopped their pursuit to take a look at the sign.

“Shit… bastard’s running for Mt. Ebott.” One of the men muttered, stomping his boot into the ground. “Dammit -- we almost had him!”

“What’s the big deal?” Another asked -- a woman with a raspy voice. “Don’t the rumors say everyone who goes there doesn’t come back? Seems like the kid’s doing our job for us.”

“Hell no.”

A tall, lanky human male walked to the head of the crowd, toting a shotgun over his shoulder. His plump fingers scratched at grey stubble on his stuck out chin, and he narrowed his eyes through the rain at the path ahead.

“He’s my boy.” The man murmured, pressing forward. “And with my boy, I finish what I start.”

  
  
  
  
  


Zerrith ran up the twisting, winding path, his adrenalin fueling his energy and pushing the pain from his body. He needed to get up to the top. He needed to escape. … Didn’t he?

He looked behind him and, gradually, slowed to a stop, panting heavily and clutching the renewed stitch in his chest again. Nobody was chasing him anymore. Part of him wondered why. Part of him didn’t care. He stumbled, the weariness catching up to him and he leaned against the wall of the tall mountain he had been running along. He only managed to catch a little bit of his breath, relief just starting to set in.

**_BANG!!_ **

The boy let out a yelp as part of the rocky wall just past his face exploded, and he could feel a faint line of heat near his cheek, as if something had just barely missed him. He looked over his shoulder once more to see back down the path he had come from and his heart stopped for a beat.

As if on cue, a ripple of thunder and a spark of lightning lit up the surroundings, if only for a moment, to reveal the tall, lanky, yet gruff, armed human male that owned him. His hands firmly clasped a rifle, smoke seeping from the muzzle, and his posture was locked straight, with his legs loose and at the ready to move.  
  
Yet his face held a pleasant smile, contrasting every bitter, repugnant feature that the boy had come to know from him.

“Hey kiddo…” He almost whispered, the man’s form fading back into the darkness with the lack of light. “... let’s finish this nice and easy, ya hear?”

The darkness did not last for long; almost as soon as it returned, various flashlights appeared behind the man, the townsfolk having caught up -- and every beam of light shone at the boy as he attempted to cover his eyes. A fatal spotlight. With his eyes screwed shut, Zerrith’s ears twitched when he picked up on someone taking a step forward.

He couldn’t make a sound. He couldn’t say anything. The pup couldn’t bring himself to do much more other than fear the worst.

_Is this really it?_

No.

Another boom of thunder in the skies above snapped Zerrith to attention, and he turned and opened his eyes wide, throwing himself forward up the path ahead.

**_BANGBANGBANG--_ **

A flurry of pistol and rifle shots came from behind, pelting the ground behind him and portions of the path ahead. With a startled cry, the wolf ducked down and continued to run up until he could leap over a rock -- screams of those chasing him not far behind.

He kept running until he nearly tripped, looking up just in time to skid to a stop. He had almost run into a jagged rock sticking out from the cliffside. Rain continued to shower him as he looked up, unable to see the tip of Mt. Ebott as it pointed up towards the jet black clouds. Though, before him was the only way he could go. The path ahead ended, and instead turned into a large, open hole.

A cave. A dark one.

Zerrith didn’t even bother thinking. He just ran ahead into the cave.

A crash of thunder.

A spark of lightning.

Zerrith once again stumbled to a stop, the flash of light entering the cave just enough to illuminate his surroundings -- and he stopped right before a massive -- _massive_ gaping hole that…

… almost seemed endless.

And in an instant, it was shrouded in darkness again.

And once more, the rays of several flashlights caught up with him, and in fear, he turned around.

The way out was blocked by numerous armed humans. That… that man. _That man_. He was at the front. And he was smiling. Smiling comfortably. Complacently. Eerily. Such an otherworldly grin.

“Ya didn’t have to make this so hard, kiddo…” He muttered softly, leering down at the boy.

Zerrith’s chest began to rise and fall rapidly, pupils shrinking and shivering within his scarlet irises. Already he began to feel his knees buckle. This was it. He was going to die here and be forgotten forever and nobody would ever know or care that he existed. One hand grappled for his chest and he clutched it. His heart ached. His lungs stung like hell and he opened his mouth to scream.

Nothing came out.

His other hand came up, shaking hard as his fingers still firmly grasped that stick he had found earlier. Jagged, damp, soft and flimsy, he pointed the ‘weapon’ right out in front, directing at _that man_.

Needless to say, the human male was unimpressed. “... what were you, uh… planning on doing with that, kiddo?”

A few snorts and chuckles erupted from the blockade of humans, some lost in the rain outside, others echoing through the cavern. It was foolish. Still, Zerrith continued to hold onto the stick. Such a stupid idea, trying to run. He should have just gone home. It would have been hell but he would’ve survived to see tomorrow.

This was stupid. So stupid.

And yet he still felt compelled to make distance. His feet shuffled back instinctively, the stick still pointed out toward the humans.

“Don’t ya wanna get your boy?” One of them said.

_That man_ simply chuckled and took aim with his rifle. “... hold still kiddo… I need you to say goodnight.”

In one last act of defiance, Zerrith shook his head and took a big step back.

The bare sole of his foot found no footing.

Without thinking, he put all of his weight on, quite literally, nothing at all, and suddenly there was nothing beneath him. Air pushed on his back and his head jerked, and he let go of the stick as it descended into the darkness with him.

There were screams. Laugh. Cheers. And it all became drowned out in one final clap of thunder. And then there was darkness.

And more tears flew from Zerrith’s eyes as his mouth opened wide. He cried without sobbing. He couldn’t see anything. He could only hear the wind rushing past his ears until there was no more. Now all that there was… was that feeling of falling. An overwhelming sense of dread.

He was falling into the dark abyss and he’d never know when he’d land.

When he’d die.

So foolish. The pup ran away and got punished for it. Just as expected. Just as his luck would have it. No matter how he tried to escape, even the world didn’t want that for him.

Finally that feeling of falling stopped, though he figured he was just numb to it. Darkness continued to consume him and he wasn’t even sure if he was upside down, going headfirst in, or if he was still falling with his back to whatever lay below.

He cursed himself -- and even laughed internally. What was this kind of pain?

Foolishness? Idiocy? Why did he do this?

_Why did I have to be so stupid?_

And then he opened his eyes, hoping to catch one last glimpse of… anything, before meeting his demise.

And he stopped crying. His eyes widened. He was looking up.

He stopped falling, for he had already landed.

Above him was the cave, spiraling up into a mysterious, unearthly white glow. He was on his back, on something soft.

The wolf pup lay there, eyes wide open, unmoving. Unsure of what to do. Did he die? Was this the other side?  
  
He put a hand to his chest.

A heartbeat.

He was breathing. He could hear himself panting.

He sat up, and looked around.

The light above continued to shimmer down, and he was in the middle of a small ravine, on a bed of…

… a bed of…

… golden… flowers.

They had a healthy color to them and poked up from a raised bed of grass, perfectly positioned in the middle of where he had landed.

He had landed. The flowers broke his fall.

He fell. He lived.

He escaped?

He was lost.

He escaped.

_I escaped… but…_

Zerrith lay back down, staring back up at the mysterious glow again. Somehow, he lived.

Was it stupidity?

_… or… was it fate?_


End file.
